Author: NBTC

Prediction market traders on Polymarket have placed more than $154 million in bets on whether the United States and Iran will reach a permanent peace deal in 2026, as President Donald Trump described his decision as a “solid 50/50” between accepting a diplomatic agreement and resuming military strikes. Bitcoin rose 1.5% on the news, reclaiming the $77,000 zone. Key Takeaways: Polymarket’s US-Iran peace market hit $154M in total volume, with December 31, 2026, contracts at 91% odds. Trump described his Iran decision as “50/50” on May 23, 2026, triggering emergency talks with Vance, Hegseth, and Gen. Caine. A proposed 60-day…

Goldman Sachs’ baseline forecast of $7.6 trillion in artificial intelligence (AI) capital spending ultimately depends on how long AI‑specific silicon remains useful. Decentralized networks promise major cost efficiencies but continue to battle latency issues, and experts argue their long‑term viability will hinge on prioritizing verifiability over raw performance. Key Takeaways: Goldman Sachs cites a $7.6 trillion spend by 2031, depending on whether chips last more than 3 years. StealthEX and Cysic experts warn that DePIN latency limits decentralized AI to batch jobs over live chat. Onchain firms like Maple may bridge the $5M to $50M credit gap for Tier 2…

Manta Network, the modular blockchain protocol for zero-knowledge (ZK) applications, has officially ended its staking program for the $MANTA token. The decision, announced in late April, took effect on April 20, with all staking rewards based on new token issuance permanently halted. Why Manta Network Ended Staking According to the project team, the primary reason for ending the staking program was to prevent long-term dilution of value for existing $MANTA holders. Issuing new tokens as staking rewards, the team explained, was gradually reducing the relative value of each token in circulation. By discontinuing this practice, Manta aims to protect the…

President Donald Trump has publicly endorsed Steve Hilton, a Republican candidate for Governor of California, who has pledged to transform the state into the ‘World Crypto Capital’ by loosening digital asset regulations and attracting top talent in the blockchain sector. The endorsement, announced on social media, signals a potential shift in California’s approach to cryptocurrency oversight. Hilton’s Crypto Agenda Steve Hilton, a former adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron and a longtime political commentator, has made cryptocurrency a central pillar of his gubernatorial campaign. He proposes reducing regulatory barriers for blockchain startups, creating tax incentives for crypto businesses, and…

Ripple Joins Blockworks, Coinbase, and Grayscale in Transparency Alliance to Raise Crypto Disclosure Standards The crypto industry is mounting one of its most coordinated efforts yet to establish credibility and institutional-grade transparency, with Ripple now playing a central role in the push. Blockworks has unveiled the Transparency Alliance, a broad coalition of major exchanges, custodians, market makers, stablecoin issuers, venture firms, and infrastructure providers aimed at raising disclosure standards across onchain markets. Founding participants include Ripple, Coinbase, Grayscale, Kraken, Binance.US, BitGo, VanEck, Bitwise, Anchorage Digital, MoonPay, FalconX, Aave, and other leading names in the space. At the core of the…

The Ethereum Layer 2 landscape is undergoing a painful but necessary correction. The recent shutdown of Zero Network has underscored a growing consensus among developers and investors: the era of generic, general-purpose rollups is ending. In a market flooded with nearly identical scaling solutions, differentiation has become a matter of survival. The General-Purpose Problem Ben Fisch, co-founder of Espresso Systems, a protocol focused on L2 interoperability, framed the issue clearly: the problem is not with Layer 2 technology itself, but with the overabundance of chains offering the same thing. ‘There is no reason for numerous networks to exist with identical…

Bitcoin is starting to rebound after a rocky night that saw the top cryptocurrency by market cap dive below $75,000 for the first time in over a month, dipping as low as $74,344 in the early hours of Saturday. The coin is currently trading around $75,500, showing a 1.8% drop over the last 24 hours and 2.7% in the last week. Bitcoin had traded above the $80,000 mark as recently as last week before leading a broader crypto market dip in the days since. Other major cryptocurrencies are showing similar declines, with Ethereum falling 2.7% in the last day to…

The Bank of Korea (BOK) has signaled a clear strategic preference for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and deposit tokens over asset-backed tokens as it prepares for the anticipated growth of the tokenized asset market. In an issue note published today, the central bank outlined a phased approach that prioritizes the establishment of a robust digital payment infrastructure before moving to more complex tokenized assets. Phased Approach to Digital Currency The BOK’s decision, reported by iNews24, reflects a cautious yet forward-looking strategy. The central bank views CBDCs and deposit tokens—digital representations of commercial bank money—as foundational elements for a modernized…

Pyth Pro launched on the Cardano network, features latency under 100 ms and data provided by more than 125 institutional publishers. Indigo, the leading synthetic assets platform on Cardano, is the first active integration in the ecosystem. Use cases range from lending and synthetics to derivatives and real-world assets (RWAs) on the network. Pyth Network announced the launch of Pyth Pro on Cardano, bringing institutional-grade pricing infrastructure to one of the most established proof-of-stake ecosystems in the industry. The development received technical support from the Cardano Foundation and Intersect during the architecture and structuring phases. Cardano has spent years building…

Pakistan’s Budget 2026-27 is expected to introduce taxes on profits from virtual currency trading, marking a shift toward formal oversight of digital assets. The proposal would bring gains from cryptocurrency transactions into the documented fiscal system through the Finance Bill 2026. The move follows pressure on authorities to define how digital asset income should be reported and taxed. Local media reports said the Tax Policy Unit of the Finance Ministry and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) are studying the plan. Finance Bill Could Bring Crypto Gains Under Tax Rules The government is considering changes to Section 37 of the…